Reconstruction and Military Government in the South, 1867-1870, Office of Civil Affairs. Part 1: First and Second Military Districts, (Virginia and North Carolina/South Carolina)

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Overview

Following the Civil War, Congress instituted, over President Andrew Johnson's veto, several Reconstruction Acts. The first of these, passed originally on March 2, 1867, established five military districts. Virginia comprised the first military district; North Carolina and South Carolina, the second; Alabama, Florida, and Georgia, the third; Mississippi and Arkansas, the fourth; and Louisiana and Texas, the fifth. The first Reconstruction Act required states to hold constitutional conventions open to all and to draft new state constitutions that gave voting and citizenship rights to former slaves. Subsequent Reconstruction Acts instructed the military district commanders to oversee elections, register voters, and convene additional constitutional conventions. This microfilm publication reproduces the records of the U.S. Army Continental Command's Office of Civil Affairs from 1867 to 1870. The Office of Civil Affairs dealt with all aspects of voter registration, nomination of convention delegates, appointments of civil officers, and election returns. It also dealt with other civil administration tasks including law enforcement and suppression of civil disturbances. The files for the First Military District cover Virginia. Documents consist of correspondence from military commissioners, civil officers, applicants for government positions, and individual citizens; lists of voters in Frederick County, Virginia, listed by skin color; lists of persons recommended for civil service positions; loyalty oaths; and items relating to law enforcement. The files for the Second Military district are from North Carolina and South Carolina and contain recommendations of people to serve as voting registrars, military orders for voter registration, oaths of office, and applications for civil office.

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